To the editor:

In the April 17/18 Weekend Mining Journal, leaders of the Episcopal Church in Northern Michigan and the UP called Line 5 an “unacceptable risk that must go.”

The Keweenaw Unitarian Universalist Fellowship joins our Episcopalian brothers and sisters in calling for the closure of the Line 5 oil pipeline which currently runs under the Straits of Mackinac.

We urge our UP State Representatives, Greg Markkanen and Sara Cambensy and State Senator, Ed McBroom to support the Governor’s decision to close Line 5. The risk of an environmental catastrophe due to a rupture in line 5 is too great– we must come together to protect our drinking water, the coastal ecosystems where many Lake fish spawn and most wildlife species spend some part of their life cycle, and the recreation areas where visitors and residents alike enjoy fishing, boating, and swimming– the backbone of our UP economy and lifestyle.

The Upper Peninsula Energy Task has completed its report with proposals for moving forward without Line 5. We call on our representatives, at all levels of government, and private sector leaders to focus on generating efficient alternatives to Line 5 rather than resisting Governor Whitmer’s necessary decision.

As with so many things in the UP, we have the summer to prepare for winter…let’s get to work.